Conventionally in a flat knitting machine, a latch needle 1 as shown in FIG. 15 is used as a basic knitting needle. The latch needle 1 has a hook 1a at the top, and a knitting operation is performed in which a knitting stitch loop is formed while opening or closing the hook 1a by swinging and displacing the latch 1b with a rivet 1c as its center.
FIG. 15(1) shows a state in which after a ready-made knitting stitch loop 2A is formed with a knitting yarn, the latch needle 1 is lifted so that the latch 1b is opened by the knitting stitch loop 2A from an inner side of the hook 1a. FIG. 15(2) shows a state in which the latch needle 1 is lifted to the uppermost position, and an old knitting stitch loop 2A is moved so as to be positioned lower than the latch 1b, and then the latch needle 1 starts to come down, and a knitting yarn is supplied to the hook 1a to form a new knitting stitch loop 2B. FIG. 15(3) shows a state in which the latch needle 1 has come down, and the latch 1b is closed by the knitting stitch loop 2A when the latch 1b has passed through the portion of the old knitting stitch loop 2A. FIG. 15(4) shows a state in which the latch needle 1 reaches the lowermost position, and the old knitting stitch loop 2A passes from the closed latch 1b to the outside of the hook 1a and a knockover is generated, and thus a new knitting stitch loop 2B is formed.
In the basic knitting with the latch needle 1, the operations (1) to (4) are repeated. Therefore, it is necessary to move the latch needle upward and downward by a stroke S1 between the uppermost position where the hook 1a is higher than the state shown in (2) and the lowermost position shown in (4). The top of the latch 1b draws a locus 1d shown in FIG. 15(2), so that when a knitting yarn is supplied inside the locus 1d, a knitting stitch loop can be formed between the hook 1a and the latch 1b when the latch 1b is closed as shown in FIG. 15(3).
In a flat knitting machine, a compound needle 3 as shown in FIG. 16 is used as well. The compound needle 3 serves as a knitting needle, using a needle main body 4 and a slider 5. A hook 4a is formed on the top of the needle main body 4, and a tongue 5a is formed on the top of the slider. The needle main body 4 and the slider 5 can move independently in the vertical direction of the drawing, and the relative movement of the slider 5 with respect to the needle main body 4 can open and close the hook 4a with the tongue 5a. The configuration of the flat knitting machine using such a compound needle 3 is disclosed in Japanese Patent No. 3085657 by the applicant.
FIG. 16(1) shows the state in which after a ready-made knitting stitch loop 2A is formed with a knitting yarn, the needle main body 4 is lifted, and the hook 4a is apart from the tongue 5a of the slider 5 so that the needle hook for holding the knitting stitch loop 2A is opened. FIG. 16(2) shows a state in which the needle main body 4 is lifted to the uppermost position, and an old knitting stitch loop 2A is moved so as to be positioned in the tongue 5a, and then the needle main body 4 starts to come down, and a knitting yarn is supplied to the hook 4a to form a new knitting stitch loop 2B. FIG. 16(3) shows a state in which the needle main body 4 has come down, the tongue 5a holds the old knitting stitch loop 2A and the needle hook is closed. FIG. 16(4) shows a state in which the needle main body 4 and the slider 5 reach the lowermost position, and the old knitting stitch loop 2A passes from the closed tongue 5a to the outside of the hook 4a and a knockover is generated, and thus a new knitting stitch loop 2B is formed.
In the case of a flat knitting machine having the compound needle 3, the movement of the slider 5 having the tongue 5a on its top that is apart from or in contact with the hook 4a to open or close the needle hook does not draw the locus 1d of arc movement such as the latch 1b of the latch needle 1, but draws a linear locus 3a. Therefore, an advance and retreat stroke S2 of the needle main body 4 can be small, so that the size of the flat knitting machine can be reduced and high productivity can be obtained.
In order to increase the productivity with the flat knitting machine, a loop presser that presses knitting stitch loops during knitting can be used. The applicant discloses the configuration of a flat knitting machine in which a loop presser is mounted in Japanese Patent No. 3044373. FIGS. 5 to 8 of this patent publication disclose the configuration in which a loop presser for pressing a knitting stitch loop latched by a latched needle and a yarn guide for pressing down a knitting yarn suspended from a yarn feeding port to the latch needle with a yarn pressing portion and guiding the knitting yarn to a position at which the hook of the latch needle can hold the knitting yarn are provided. FIGS. 13 and 14 disclose the configuration in which a loop pressing portion of the loop presser is advanced to a side end portion of a knitted fabric, and end stitches are made while the knitting yarn extending from the last formed knitting stitch loop to the yarn feeding port is pressed. Such a function can be regarded as a yarn guiding function for the end stitches. Furthermore, FIG. 15 and the following drawings disclose the configuration in which the yarn guiding function also is served by a loop presser as a “best mode example”. In this best mode example, one loop presser presses a knitting stitch loop and feeds a yarn to the hook, and even in the case of the compound needle, stable yarn feeding conditions can be obtained.
As described above, in the compound needle 3, as shown in FIG. 16, the necessary stroke is smaller than in the latch needle 1 shown in FIG. 15, so that the productivity can be increased. However, opening/closing the hook 4a of the compound needle 3 is performed by the movement that draws the linear locus 3a as described above, and therefore the yarn feeding conditions are stricter than in the latch needle 1. When the best mode example disclosed in Japanese Patent No. 3044373 is used, it is expected that stable yarn feeding conditions can be obtained even for the compound needle.
The yarn guiding function for end stitches disclosed in Japanese Patent No. 3044373 is performed using the same portion of the top portion of the loop presser as used for the loop pressing function. It is not particularly considered to make a portion exclusively for the yarn guiding function for end stitches. The carriage that controls the knitting movement of the knitting needle is provided with a plurality of sets of systems constituted by cam locks, and when the carriage travels once in a longitudinal direction of a knitting bed, a plurality of courses can be knitted. It is selected in one needle selecting portion provided corresponding to each system for knitting whether or not the loop presser is to be operated, and the cam route in which the loop presser passes is controlled by a solenoid, so that switching whether only the loop pressing function is operated or the loop pressing function and the yarn guiding function are operated is performed. For this reason, the loop presser used during knitting one course passes always in the same cam route.
In a case where a knitted fabric is knitted with the compound needle, the following problem may be caused. In the side end portion of the knitted fabric that becomes a folded portion of the knitted fabric, the knitting yarn is surmounted on the slider of the knitting needle when feeding the yarn to the knitting needle for the start of knitting for the next course, and this knitting yarn cannot be held by the needle hook (hereinafter, this problem is referred to as “yarn entanglement”). The problem of yarn entanglement in end stitches may be caused by the following factors.
The position of the knitting yarn at the time of feeding the yarn is not precisely determined partly because the position of the yarn feeding port provided on the top of the yarn carrier is not appropriately adjusted, or the yarn carrier does not work due to a long time use. In a case where so-called multiple yarn knitting using bundled knitting yarns is performed, the knitting yarn is particularly easily surmounted on the slider, because the knitting yarn is flattened and extended at the point when the knitting yarn is in contact with the knitting needle. Furthermore, when the tension applied to the knitting yarn is weak, the knitting yarn is easily dislocated and easily surmounted on the slider. The problem is caused especially when the knitting needle for knitting at the end of the course is the same needle that for knitting at the start of the next course such as plain stitch or rib stitch.